Chapter 27: Lion Iron Token
Suddenly, there was a commotion outside the door.
The “bang! bang! bang!” of knocking on the door was particularly jarring in the silent night.
“Zhu Sangyu! Get out here! You slut! Colluding with outsiders to harm me!”
It was Zhu Xifeng’s voice.
Xiao Yin urgently stopped him, “Young Master, don’t be foolish. The son-in-law and Miss are inside, you can’t go in!”
“Foolish? Who is being foolish? Zhu Sangyu, that ungrateful little shrew! Mother and Father should have beaten her to death long ago! She actually colluded with people from the Eastern Depot to castrate me. Hmph, castrate me, and then the Zhu family will have no descendants? How malicious…”
Upon hearing the words “Eastern Depot,” I stiffened. Cheng Huaishi also paused.
Zhu Xifeng continued to shout relentlessly.
I sat up, put on my clothes, got out of bed, and opened the door. Zhu Xifeng stumbled in.
In the moonlight, I slapped him hard across the face.
“You scoundrel, what nonsense are you spouting!”
Zhu Xifeng, caught off guard by the blow, sat on the ground and started crying, “You dare hit me? You dare hit me? Father! Mother! Come quickly! This slut is bullying me! You can’t just ignore this!”
Xiao Yin tried to pull him up, but he spat at her.
The sound of hurried footsteps approached.
Servants carrying lanterns, my father, and Lin Yue rushed over.
Lin Yue, like a mother hen protecting her chicks, rushed forward and hugged Zhu Xifeng, “My son, what’s wrong? Why are you running to your Elder Sister and Elder Brother-in-law’s place instead of sleeping properly?”
Cheng Huaishi walked out from the inner room.
Clearly, this sudden farce displeased him and also shocked him slightly, but out of consideration for appearances, he couldn’t openly express his anger.
My father and Lin Yue knew they were in the wrong. They were leaving tomorrow, and if they caused a scene, how would they get silver from me? So, they quickly pulled Zhu Xifeng away.
Zhu Xifeng started rolling on the ground, “Father, Mother, you’ve all been deceived by her… Everything I said is true… I swear, if I’ve told even half a lie, may lightning strike me!”
My father was stunned and asked, “Feng’er, do you have any proof for what you’re saying?”
“Of course I do!”
Zhu Xifeng pointed at me, “Father, Mother, do you still remember that this little shrew used to have an iron token with a lion engraved on it? When I was little, I snatched her iron token to play with, and she even bit me. I remember it clearly! Father, you punished her by making her kneel in the courtyard for biting me. Father, do you remember?”
My father and Lin Yue exchanged a glance, nodded, and asked, “What happened to that iron token?”
Zhu Xifeng sobbed, “That person wanted to castrate me today, and I struggled and resisted. I thought to myself, I am the only heir of the Zhu family, I cannot let Father be without descendants. Qiao Yan and Cui Hong in the manor are still waiting for me, how can I lose my manhood? I am supposed to give Father grandchildren…”
My father stroked his beard and coughed, “Feng’er, just tell us what happened.”
Zhu Xifeng tugged at my father’s sleeve and said, “He wanted to castrate me, and as I resisted, an iron token with a lion engraved on it fell from him. I found it familiar at the time. But I was so scared that I didn’t think of it immediately. Later, when I was lying in bed, it suddenly came to me! That’s exactly Zhu Sangyu’s thing! How could her iron token be in the Eastern Depot? She must have given it to that chief eunuch! So I rushed over to ask her directly for an explanation!”
As soon as these words were spoken, it was like a hurricane sweeping through everyone present.
“Father, Zhu Sangyu colluded with outsiders to harm me. How can she face the ancestors of the Zhu family?” Zhu Xifeng said triumphantly, waiting to see my downfall.
My father walked towards me.
Cheng Huaishi immediately shielded me and said to my father, “Father-in-law, please don’t be hasty. There must be some misunderstanding. My younger brother-in-law might have seen incorrectly in his panic. Madam has always been virtuous since marrying into the Cheng family, and I believe she would never do such a thing.”
My father looked at me, “Sangyu, tell me, what exactly is going on?”
I did indeed have such a lion iron token.
It had been with me since I could remember.
I had asked my mother why she had a lion engraved on the iron token. My mother would only stroke my head and not answer.
After my mother passed away, I stored the iron token with my childhood belongings. I would only take it out to look at it on my mother’s death anniversary, to remember her.
Zhu Xifeng spoke with such conviction. For a moment, I couldn’t tell if he was being a scoundrel and lying, or if my iron token had indeed been lost and picked up by Feng Gao.
I quickly turned and rummaged through the old hemp clothes in the chest.
The iron token was still there.
I was relieved.
I held up the iron token and said to Zhu Xifeng, “Open your dog eyes and see clearly! My iron token is right here! If you dare to spout any more nonsense, I will not let you off lightly!”
Zhu Xifeng rubbed his eyes, “How can this be? I clearly saw this iron token at the Eastern Depot! It’s identical! I swear! I swear! If you didn’t give it to him, then you two must have known each other long ago to have the same iron token! In any case, you have something going on with that eunuch!”
A trembling voice came—
“If one wants to bribe the Eastern Depot, one should send gold or silver, why would one send a worthless iron object?”
Everyone looked up and saw the Old Madam being supported by a maidservant.
Lin Yue quickly put on a smile, “Why has the Old Madam been disturbed?”
The Old Madam caught her breath and smiled, “Someone is framing my daughter-in-law for colluding with the Eastern Depot, how could I possibly sleep?”
Upon hearing this, my father and Lin Yue quickly bowed and apologized.
The Old Madam beckoned me to come over.
I walked closer to her.
She held my hand and said with tears, “Sangyu, only today do I realize what a pitiable child you are. Born but not raised, a severed finger can be returned. You should cut off your own finger tonight and return it, lest others push you to your death…”
She was speaking to me, but in reality, she was speaking to my father.
She pretended to call out to a maidservant, “Go, get the Second Young Mistress a knife—”
The maidservant feigned agreement.
Seeing this, my father quickly said, “What are you saying, in-laws? It is our fault. We will take Feng’er and leave now.”
Saying this, he fiercely slapped Zhu Xifeng, “You scoundrel! Look at the mess you’ve caused! You’ve completely disgraced me!”
Zhu Xifeng was stunned by the slap.
The three of them, pulling and dragging, left the East Courtyard.
The Old Madam said, “What the maternal uncle just said—”
My father quickly replied, “We won’t mention it again. We won’t mention it again.”
After a while, the courtyard became quiet again.
I lowered my head, “Thank you, Mother.”
The Old Madam waved her hand wearily, looked at me, then at Cheng Huaishi, “Sangyu, Huai’er, you should rest now.”
The maidservant supported the Old Madam as she left.
Cheng Huaishi and I entered the room one after another.
Xiao Yin closed the door.
I sensitively felt that the atmosphere in the bedroom had changed.
Desire, like water, cooled and dissipated.
Without a trace.
I lay down, clutching the iron token.
After all the commotion, both Cheng Huaishi and I had lost the mood for lovemaking.
He looked at the iron token in my hand, as if wanting to say something.
I knew that Zhu Xifeng’s confident words had cast a shadow of doubt in his heart.
“Madam, this person Feng Gao is not simple. He was the adopted son of Cao Yun, the previous Eunuch of the Eastern Depot, yet he rose to power on Cao Yun’s blood. He personally severed Cao Yun’s tendons and ligaments, and all the ministers in court were chilled by the news. A person who can betray even his adoptive father, a person who will do anything for power, should be kept at a distance. He has repeatedly disrupted the New Policies and opposed Minister Zhang. Madam, you…” He stopped speaking.
I quickly said, “I have no personal dealings with him.”
He sighed, “Madam is a smart person. But sometimes, being too smart can lead to mistakes.”
“I, I…”
He gently placed his finger on my lips, “I believe Madam. I will always believe you.”
That night, I tossed and turned.
Cheng Huaishi lay beside me.
Listening to his breathing, I suddenly thought of Miss Xun.
My heart felt a moment of confusion.
If Miss Xun were me, she probably wouldn’t have had such discord with him.
Perhaps I shouldn’t have repeatedly asked Feng Gao for his help.
Feng Gao and he were fundamentally on different paths.
What kind of disaster would arise in the future?
Minister Zhang’s illness this time made me sense the undercurrents and ill omens.
I turned over on the bed.
Where did Feng Gao get that iron token that Zhu Xifeng mentioned?
At midnight, in a light sleep, my mother suddenly appeared in my dream—
